Feedback on my water parameters

[AquaDan]

The tank has been cycled since the end of March. I've had two small clowns and two small gobies in for a couple of weeks. Everything seems to be doing well. My only concern is that I have not seen much coraline. Just looking for some feedback on my parameters. Wondering if there is anything that I should keep an eye on or if something should be higher or lower.

Using Salifert kits:

Ammonia: 0-0.25
Nitrate: 0-2
Phosphate: 0-0.03
PH: 8.0
Calcium: 490
Alk: 7-7.3
Mag: 1470-1500
Salinity: 35PPT
TDS: 0
Running dual reactor carbon and GFO
Bi-weekly 30 gallon water changes

Thanks everyone.

 

[KathyC]

Do you currently have any LR with coralline growing on it in the tank?

Best to take a rock -with the color coralline you want to encourage to grow - and scrape some of the coralline off of it with a sharp krife or razor and let it circulate in the tank.
As long as your parameters are in good shape, you have good flow & lighting and there isn't algae growing on your rock - the coralline should begin to grow.
Patience is key as it doesn't happen overnight.
Do resist the urge to use Purple Up - that will only throw your parameters out of whack

 

[AquaDan]

Do you currently have any LR with coralline growing on it in the tank?

Best to take a rock -with the color coralline you want to encourage to grow - and scrape some of the coralline off of it with a sharp krife or razor and let it circulate in the tank.
As long as your parameters are in good shape, you have good flow & lighting and there isn't algae growing on your rock - the coralline should begin to grow.
Patience is key as it doesn't happen overnight.
Do resist the urge to use Purple Up - that will only throw your parameters out of whack

Thanks for the feedback Kathy. I do have specs of coraline on a few pieces of rock. I tried scrubbing one with a toothbrush a couple of weeks ago. Not sure if It did anything though. Maybe I should make that a weekly routine? I do have some algae growing on the glass but I've been scraping it off once a week and I have a WP40 taking care of the flow. My lights are currently at 60 percent intensity and they run from 11am - 11pm.

 

[viplok]

first off. what did you start with? LR or DR? i started off with dry rock and i have a very minimal coraline grow.

in comparison, my other tank started with LR and those damn coraline starting to cover everywhere.

imo it looks nice at first but after they start taking over ur glass and powerhead it can be a pain. if you do want to encourage the growth go grab yourself a well establish rock and scrape it once a while i am sure it will spread like weed with your water parameter. maybe bump alk to 8-8.5. just wait. eventually it will happen.

 

[AquaDan]

first off. what did you start with? LR or DR? i started off with dry rock and i have a very minimal coraline grow.

in comparison, my other tank started with LR and those damn coraline starting to cover everywhere.

imo it looks nice at first but after they start taking over ur glass and powerhead it can be a pain. if you do want to encourage the growth go grab yourself a well establish rock and scrape it once a while i am sure it will spread like weed with your water parameter. maybe bump alk to 8-8.5. just wait. eventually it will happen.

Most of it is base rock (about 135lbs) but I have a few pieces of live rubble rock with specs of coraline on them. I also have a few pieces of rock that I bought from a member that was out of water for a while. Some of them are starting to show specs of coraline as well. I was a little concerned about the ALK being a bit low but it has actually increased since my last test so I guess the tank is maturing. Would it make sense to buy a piece of encrusted rock from an LFS? Would I be risking starting a cycle? Dont want to harm the fish I have in there.

 

[viplok]

your on a good track. just leave things the way it is and try to keep things stable by maintaining alk and cal via whatever method you choose. all you need is patients=]

if you start seeing new growth of coraline there is no need to get a rock to seed it.